LaValle: Senate Green Lights Legislation to Protect Montauk Lighthouse, Historic Landmarks From Erosion

Photo by Richard Lewin Professional Photography, soniboy@aol.com.

MONTAUK, NY - Legislation that could help to save the Montauk Lighthouse from fierce erosion has just moved forward, according to New York State Senator Ken LaValle.

LaValle said Thursday that the Senate had approved legislation he drafted to protect national historic landmarks from shore erosion.

The bill, he said, would enable the New York State Department of Conservation to take necessary action to protect the sites, including the Montauk Lighthouse.

“It’s essential that we provide the Department of Environmental Conservation with the necessary tools to save our pristine shorelines and our historic places, like the Montauk Lighthouse," he said in a release.

As it stands, LaValle said, the DEC cannot enter into "financially obligated agreements with non-profit organizations to halt erosion."

The Montauk Lighthouse is managed by the Montauk Historical Society, a non-profit entity, so without the legislation, the DEC cannot help with shore erosion at the site, LaValle said in the release.

"The legislation provides a solution to the issue," he said.

According to LaValle, the legislation is needed to grant authority to the Commissioner of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to undertake any project to protect a National Historic Landmark.

The Montauk Lighthouse is designated by the United States Secretary of the Interior as a National Historic Landmark, and was deeded to the Montauk Historical Society in 1996.

The legislation has now been sent to the Assembly, where New York State Assemblyman Fred Thiele has sponsored the bill there.